AVETIK HARUTYUNYAN
One of the founders of the subfield of Foreign Policy Analysis is Richard Snyder , with his monograph “ Decision-Making as an Approach to the Study of International Politics ” presented in 1954 . It was later republished with some additional essays in 1962 as “ Foreign Policy Decision-Making ”, edited by Richard Snyder , Henry Bruck and Burton Sapin . The authors aimed to facilitate discussions on the process of foreign policy decision-making and the role of internal and external factors that influence it . They considered foreign policy decision-making from the organizational perspective , thus emphasizing the relevance of studying actors involved in the process of decision-making , their competencies and motivations , the role of bureaucracy , the personal characteristics and professional qualities of decision-makers , possible issues concerning the flow and perception of information and so on . 3 This foundational work was followed by extensive research in Foreign Policy Analysis and Foreign Policy Decision-Making in particular , which contributed to the development of significant scholarship on this topic and the formulation of several models of Foreign Policy Decision-Making . 4
As already noted , an actor-specific approach is one of the key features for the study of Foreign Policy Analysis . The actors involved in foreign policy decision-making and the scope of their authority can vary depending on the countries being studied , political system or current political situation and other factors . Clear identification of the main actors involved in the process of foreign policy decision-making and the competencies granted to them is crucial when analyzing the actual policy choice made for every specific case . Also , it should be taken into account that the actors involved in the process of foreign policy decision-making can be divided ( in very general terms ) into two major groups : those that are directly involved in the decision-making process through the existing legal framework of the state and are legally or otherwise authorized to make a decision or participate in decision-making ( such as Head of State , Foreign Minister , Parliament , leader of the ruling party , etc .), and various political or social groups , media , think tanks , business circles or other interested groups and the general public , as well as external actors or
3
For more details , see Richard C . Snyder , H . W . Bruck , Burton Sapin , Valerie M . Hudson , Derek H . Chollet , and James M . Goldgeier , Foreign policy decision-making ( revisited ) ( New York : Palgrave , 2002 ), 21-152 .
4
For more on the development of the subfield of Foreign Policy Analysis , see Valerie M . Hudson , “ The History and Evolution of Foreign Policy Analysis ,” in Foreign Policy : Theories , Actors , Cases , 2nd ed ., ed . Steve Smith , Amelia Hadfield , Tim Dunne ( Oxford : Oxford University Press , 2012 ), 13-34 .
31